Door handle



F. STEELE DOOR HANDLE May 2, 1933.

Filed Sept. 20, 1930 Patented May 2, 1933 arcs rarer ERED STEELE, OF WEST HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR T SABGENT & COMPANY,

OF NEW LEAVE-N, CONNECTICUT DOOR HANDLE Application filed September 20, 1930. Serial No. 483,286.

21, 22, 23, and 24 being secured to door My invention relates to door handles and more especially to an arrangement wherein a handle or pair of handles may be mounted on a door or the like and securely held against detachment.

The invention relates generally speaking to an improved arrangement for securing a pair of generally U-shaped handles for a latch on the opposite sides of a door, the handles being usually held in place by a number of screws passing through the handles or through cscutcheon plates to which the handles are secured and into the door.

One of the principal objects of the invention is to provide an arrangement wherein the strain thrown on one handle may be transmitted to the handle or escutcheon ilate on the opposite side of the door.

Another object of the invention is to bring about an arrangement having the above characteristics in which the handles may be readily adjusted to doors of various thicknesses.

To these and other ends, the invention consists in the novel features and combinations of parts to be hereinafter described and claimed.

In tne drawing:

Fig. 1 is a front elevational view of apart of a door having a handle mounted thereon according to my invention;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view along line 2-2 of Fig. 1, but on an enlarged scale, and

Fig. 3 is a view showing front and end elevational views of a part of the securing mechanism.

Referring now to the drawing in which I have illustrated my invention by showing a preferred embodiment of the same, the reference numeral 10 indicates a door on the opposite sides of which are handles 11 and 12. The handles 11 and 12 are generally U-shape and terminate in threaded stems 13, 14. 15, and 16 which pass through openlugs 17, 18, 19, and 20 in escutcheon plates 21, 22, 23, and 24 to which the handles 11 and 12 are secured by means of nuts 25, 26, 27, and 28 mounted on the threaded stems 13, 14, 15, and 16, escutcheon plates by screws 29 and 30. I

Secured to the inner faces 31 and 32 of escutcheon plates 21 and 23 by means of nuts and 27 are brackets 33 and 34 on thereon by the escutcheon plates 21 and 23,

and tending to separate the former from the door, it is proposed herein to transmit the 4 strain thrown on one handle and escutcheon plate to tie handle and escutheon plate on the-opposite side of the door. As a suitable means to this end, the stems 13 and 15 of handles 11 and 12 are provio d with axially directed threaded openings 41 and 42 one of which serves to support the threaded end 43 of screw 44 while the other serves to support a threaded end 45 of hook 46. The hook 46 is provided with an arcuate end 47 spaced from a head 48 a distance at least equal to thethickness of the head 49 of screva 44, the arcuate end 47 providing a pair of fingers 50 and 51 which engage the under side of head 49 of screw 44 when the handles are assembled on the door. The inner faces 52 of fingers 50 and 51 taper outwardly toward their upper ends as shown in Fig. 3 for a purpose to be described hereinafter. V

In assembling the handles on the door, the hook 46 and screw 44 are adjusted in the threaded openings 41 and 42 so that when the escutcheons 21 and 23 are placed against the opposite faces of the door, the head 49 of screw 44 may be brought into tight engage- V of screw 44 is seated between the fingers and 51.

In the ordinary form of handle the strains are largely taken up by the screws 29 which often separate from the door owing to the fact that very little material surrounds these screws on account of the relatively large size of the opening necessary for the latch retracting mechanism. In the present instance the screws 29 are relieved of the greater part, if not all, of the strain and it is im possible for the handles to become detached from the door owing to the connection extending from one handle to the other. e The term door handles used in this application is used in its broad sense and is intended to include any members secured upon the door to be grasped or manipulated in opening or closing operations, such as push bars for example.

lVhile I have shown and described a preferred embodiment of my invention, it will be understood that it is not to be limited to all of the details shown, but is capable of modification and variation within the spirit of the invention and within the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is: V

1. In combination, a pair of handles adapted to be applied to a door on the opposite faces thereof, said handles being pro vided with escutcheon plates to be secured to the door and stems projecting through the escutcheon plates into an opening in the door, said stems having threaded openings therein, a pair of handle connecting elements mounted one in each of said threaded openings, one of said elements being provided with a head and the other of said ele ments having a hook-like end adapted to detachably engage said head to hold the handles together, whereby the strain on one of said handles is resisted by the escutcheon plate on the other side of the door.

2. In combination, a pair of handles adapted to be secured to a door on the opposite faces thereof, said handles being provided with escutcheon plates to be secured to the door and stems projecting through the escutcheon plates into an opening in the door having threaded openings therein, a pair of handle connecting elements mounted one in each of said threaded openings, one of said elements being provided with a head and the other of said elements having a hook-like end adapted to engage the underside of the head to hold the handles together, the hook-like end having inclined surfaces adapted to produce relative axial movement of said elements upon engagement of the hook-like end with the head.

3. In combination, a pair of handles adapted to be secured to a door on the opposite faces thereof, escutcheon plates one for each of the opposite faces of the door,

said handles being provided with threaded stems adapted to extend through the escutcheon plates into interior of the door, nuts on said stems for securing the handles to the plates, a pair of handle connecting elements adjustably mounted one on each of said stems, one of said elements being provided with a head and the other of said elements having a hook-like end adapted to detachably engage said head to hold the handles together.

4:. In combination, a pair of handles adapted to be applied to a door on the opposite faces thereof, a pair of escutcheon plates one for each of the opposite faces of the door, said handles being provided with threaded stems adapted to extend through the escutcheon plate, nuts on said stems for securing the handles to the plates, said stems having threaded axially directed openings therein, a pair of handle connecting elements mounted one in each of said threaded openings, one of said elements being provided 'ith a head and the other of said elements having a hook-like end adapted to engage the underside of the head to hold the handles together, the hook-like end being shaped to produce relative axial movement of said elements upon engagement of the hook-like end with the head.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this 18th day of September, 1930.

FRED STEELE. 

